When looking at how the 2023 off-season is unfolding, it’s hard to deny the Chicago Bears have had some remarkable good luck thus far. Timely injuries helped them put together a franchise-record losing streak to reach 3-14. Then they watched the Houston Texans, the actual worst team in football, winning two of their last three games, including a late 4th quarter comeback over Indianapolis to hand over the #1 overall pick. Even now, over a month later, people still can’t believe the Texans did that.
It set the stage for GM Ryan Poles to do almost anything he wants over the next three months. He can take the best player on his board. He could also trade the pick. This is a gigantic opportunity to reshape the landscape of the entire Bears franchise. One person, though, thinks Poles’ biggest stroke of luck wasn’t getting the first pick. It was hanging onto his top lieutenant. Howie Roseman, award-winning GM of the Philadelphia Eagles, made it clear the organization was beyond fortunate to keep assistant GM Ian Cunningham in the building for another year. Roseman made his opinions on his former colleague clear to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
“I miss that guy tremendously,” Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said. “That guy’s a star. He’s a star evaluator. He has a great sense of how to build a team.”
“In my humble opinion, the Bears are renting him — because he’s got a tremendous future,” Roseman said. “He’s inquisitive. He wants to know about everything, every part of it. He’s going to make a great GM.”
The Chicago Bears almost lost Cunningham last month.
He was interviewed by multiple teams for their open GM positions and was reportedly a finalist in both Tennessee and Arizona. The Titans went with Ran Carthon instead, but it appears the Cardinals were ready to offer Cunningham the job. However, he turned it down. There aren’t any clear details why, but the Bears aren’t complaining. Poles was overjoyed at the news. He said in recent interviews he always knew Cunningham’s stay in Chicago would be short. The guy is too good at what he does. The goal was to make as much use of his talents as possible in a brief window. Getting a second off-season with him is a boon.
Cunningham comes from a glowing background. His early years were spent with the Baltimore Ravens as a scout before transitioning to Philadelphia. He has worked under two of the best general managers in the league this side of the millennium in Roseman and Ozzie Newsome. Poles wanted to bring those influences to the Chicago Bears. It was evident right away he did good when the Eagles filed a grievance with the NFL about not letting executives leave for a new team until after an off-season was over. That is how upset they were at losing Cunningham. It will be exciting to see what he does in off-season #2.
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@Forte’. You nailed it. I live in Phoenix… and can tell you that the thought of the mess that is Kyler Murray scared him away from the Cardinals. The guys is UBER talented… not an MVP but he’s pretty good. However he’s the polar opposite of JF. (he’s relied on his GOD given talents, spoiled, immature, selfish, entitled and frankly LAZY. The cardinals actually felt he was sooooo ill prepared they put a ‘study’ clause in his contract. (yeah the 200 MILLION dollar one). When the Jack*ss finally read the contract and found the clause he USED the media to… Read more »
Lets hope Erik the Magpie gets hired to help offset Cunningham when he leaves next year. We could get 2 3rd comp picks for Cunningham and then the following year we could get 3 3rd picks for the Magpie exit…the NFL is promoting Magpie’s now and will come out w the new rule after the SB. Go get em Magpie Lambert!
So if IAN CUNNINGHAM is that good then why wouldnt POLES offer him a position of equal title and SHARE the position.Its all about TEAM at the end of the day and these 2 could turn the founding franchise into something very special TOGETHER! The BEARS have a huge pot of gold and need to make an offer to IAN that he cant refuse!Once you get GEMS in the building you should never let them out until their RETIREMENT party.Im still choked they let JASON PETERS walk,he should have been retained as the OL coach.The guy is one of the… Read more »
kjmerk….take the”m” out of your name. Oh….and response to your statement….
Blah blah blah….sounds like you need a pacifier
Not to mention the 2 3rd rounders we will receive when he inevitably leaves next off-season. He gave us a gift by turning down the cardinals job.